Some of Ohio's top junior prospects were in Columbus on Saturday afternoon when Ohio State hosted Michigan State in its Big Ten opener. Among the headliners was local product Jake Butt. The 6-foot-6, 220-pound defensive end/tight end from Pickerington (Ohio) North High School has been receiving heavy interest from the Buckeyes for months now.

"It was a tough game for them," said Butt of the loss. "They did a lot of things right and a lot of things wrong but it was an exciting experience."

While at the game, Butt was able to speak with Director of Football Operations, Greg Gillum.

"We arrived kind of late but I talked to Greg Gillum," he said. "We just talked a little bit about our Reynoldsburg game (which North won on Friday)."

"It's kind of cool because I've got to know him beforehand," he said. "We (Butt and Tanner Gillum) play basketball and football together so I've kind of got to know (Greg) a little bit but going and seeing him at games, we get to build a pretty good relationship over the next few years so that's cool."

Right now Butt holds five verbal offers from Bowling Green, Buffalo, Kent State, Toledo, and UCLA but more could be on the way in the near future.

"I'm getting a ton of letters from schools like Tennessee, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and a bunch of other programs," he said. "I haven't got a chance to really go out and tour a lot of campuses and meet coaches so I can't really name any favorites right now."

Though the term 'athlete's is rarely used on bigger prospects, that is essentially what Butt is being recruited as. His size and athleticism project well to both tight end and defensive end and Butt said most schools are giving him a choice of either offense or defense at the next level.

"I just like to be on the field to be honest," he said. "It doesn't really matter to me (what position he plays), wherever they need me, I'll play."

Butt is having a strong junior season so far for North but with the graduation of Darien Bryant, a 2011 Vanderbilt signee, Butt is seeing a lot more attention from opposing offenses when he lines up at his rush end position.

"It's a lot more difficult this year because I'm getting double-teamed coming off the edge," he said. "It makes things more difficult but I think I'm doing pretty well. I'm leading the team in sacks right now, I had a big sack against Central two weeks ago and I had two sacks against Reynoldsburg last week."